Reviews with content warning for Gore - Smoke Gets in Your Eyes: And Other Lessons from the Crematory

Phew, this book is not for the faint hearted. Absolutely fantastic read, would recommend 100%, but with a cautionary warning. In my opinion, this book is mainly about two things: the actual nitty gritty (which will definitely have you gagging and shuddering) of death of the body, and an examination of rituals (or lack thereof in American society) around death. I made my way through this book with equal parts melancholy and also hopefulness. Hopeful about a new way to view death and how I can pay honor to it for both a loved one and myself. It's not only an informative read, but an entertaining one. The author tells her own story detailing her fascination with death (including her own suicidal thoughts), that reads funny, honest, and thought provoking. If you do decide to read this, be prepared that she discusses in detail what happens to all deceased bodies, including babies, suicides, violent deaths, and bodies donated to science. So if you're not ready to face that reality, I would hold off. Expect also some dark humor, that some might find crass, but I found appropriate considering the author's line of work.

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dragonwithapen's review against another edition

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challenging informative reflective fast-paced

3.5

There were some parts in the book that I feel like could have been treated with more care and thought behind it? But all around it was a great book that made a point to make you question your own mortality. Not your normal beach read, for sure! Still, a very enjoyable time :3

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cadence99's review against another edition

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dark emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

2.5

What I liked:
•the discussion of death practices in various cultures
•the authors personal musings on how best to manage the image and processing of death

What I didn’t like:
•chapters feel a bit disjointed in their themes
•the repeated use of race as a descriptor for ONLY non-white people when it is irrelevant to the narrative of the story being told
•pretty gross anti-fat comments, primarily in one particular section where she talks about her coworker declaring that despite the medical examiners determination to the contrary, the person MUST have died of a heart attack from being so fat and “This is why you can’t be fat!”- in addition to describing in great detail how fat bodies smell worse, but then dismissing the coworkers comments as “just fact” (even though he is literally ignoring fact by assuming the mans cause of death is not the one determined by the examiners professional assessment)
• in the same scene as above, repeatedly bringing up how her coworkers continually mistakenly say the person is Mexican, despite him being Salvadoran
•irrelevant added story where a coworker says they should fire bomb the city of San Francisco because it is a “hell pit”

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rhi_reading's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative medium-paced

3.5

A frank and honest look at the death industry in the US, this book is a Frankenstein’s monster of memoir, manifesto, and general musings on death and mortality that doesn’t shy away from the gory details. If you’ve currently got a newborn baby, I’d recommend skipping the chapter on infant cremation.

I awarded the book 3.5 because while the subject matter was interesting, the prose was a little over-written and quippy for my taste. The author’s breeziness around morbid topics is a key feature of the book that does benefit the text overall, but there are times when she would have benefited from drawing back a little and letting the actual topic at hand speak for itself instead of trying to cram in a pithy observation or half-hearted joke.

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tipsyspacedragon's review against another edition

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informative inspiring reflective relaxing medium-paced

4.5

I had a wonderful time with this book. Caitlin's breadth of experiences and research mesh delightfully with her personality and humour in this piece.

I imagine even reading this without prior context, I would still feel depth of connection to the subject, through the experiences shared here.

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weelasswithabook's review against another edition

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dark emotional hopeful informative sad medium-paced

4.5

CW: graphic descriptions of death, decomposition, body preparation, mentions of baby death and loss, cannibalism, suicide

🌟 Non Fiction
🌟 Popular Science/Autobiographical

This was an interesting read. At surface level, it's a book filled with insights and tidbits of information regarding the life of a crematorium worker. At it's heart, it explores the reckoning of coming to terms with your own mortality and making a difference moving forwards.

Featuring rather gruesome descriptions of death, the decomposition process and pre-burial/cremation preparations, I'd approach with caution if you have a weak stomach. There's also something triggering about the emotionally detached discussions around disposal of infant remains (although not don't callously, it did deeply affect me in a certain way), but it's relevant to the book itself.

One thing that jumped out to me and changed my perceptions was CDs lack of judgement. Exploring different cultures post mortem processes, there was no criticisms there, only the acceptance that something that seems so abstract and gruesome to us is part of someone's sacred culture. For example, tribal rituals where cannibalism is involved. Most people would recoil instantly, buy Doughty discusses these rituals with respect and emphasising how this is simply a different cultures practise and how to them, our ideals of cremation and/or preserving corpses would be looked down upon. So I really appreciated that aspect of it.

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